Every week the CFP Vibe Check tries to put its finger on where things stand in the College Football Playoff race without overreacting to what it just saw, but also probably overreacting to everything it just saw. It was such a ridiculous question during the offseason that I found it offensive. After we spent the entire offseason between the 2024 and 2025 seasons asking, "who is the next Indiana?" we tried to do it again.
Even though the Indiana we were all trying to replace won the national title, pulling off one of the most improbable turnaround stories in sports history, not just college football, people couldn't help themselves. Low-hanging fruit will forever be reached for because it's right there! So when UCLA hired Bob Chesney from James Madison, it was simply impossible not to ask.
Chesney, like Curt Cignetti, was hired away from James Madison. He was hired by a Big Ten basketball school that hasn't had the same kind of success in basketball that it longs for, and was wondering if maybe it should put a little more effort into football. But now I sit here before you, laptop screen in front of me, fingers mindlessly tapping away at the keys, with one question for all of you.
What if UCLA actually is the next Indiana? Now, to be clear, I mean this in the "2024 Indiana" sense. I don't think UCLA is going to win a national title this year, nor do I think it will next year.
But after watching it play four games this season, and seeing how the Big Ten looks a lot softer than anticipated, I can't help but wonder if the Bruins aren't a team equipped to keep doing this. Did you see what they did to Maryland on Saturday? They may have ended the Mike Locksley Era with a 54-3 win, but the score doesn't tell the whole story.
UCLA flew across the country for an early start on the East Coast, and absolutely dominated the Terps. There are countless examples of teams having to make these long road trips and looking like they're half-asleep. They showed up, punched Maryland in the face, and just kept punching.
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